Rock a wok for popcorn, frying and more

So there I was, curled up on the sofa with my girlfriend and two pups, watching a rom-com (I’m a sucker for the sentimental) when the declaration came: “I want popcorn.” This was my cue to get in the kitchen and grab a very specific piece of cookware: my trusty wok.

That particular device has become my go-to for a surprising number of cooking tasks. And if you don’t already own one, let me give you a few reasons to hop in the car or jump online to buy a wok.

Popcorn is a perfect place to start. Because of the wok’s wideand-deep bowl shape, it’s the perfect vessel for containing those countless bursting kernels. I use a pizza pan as a lid to keep the explosive chaos under control.

And when the popping stops, the wok is also ideal for tossing that fresh popcorn with butter and salt without flinging stray bits into the nether regions under the grates of your range.

While most cooks reach for their trusty cast-iron skillets or Dutch ovens for deep-frying, the wok is generally my first choice for several reasons. The first and most obvious is the wok’s significantly larger volume. That means french fries, fried chicken or other recipes that take up a lot of skillet space will have more room to move without touching and sticking.

The thinner metal of a wok is also much more responsive to temperature changes, allowing you to increase or reduce the heat of oil quickly.

And a bonus: Cleanup will be easier. Y’all know how greasy the range gets when frying in a skillet. The wok’s high, curved walls do a far better job of containing splatter.

As a food writer, I often have four burners going at once. And if that week’s batch of recipes all require stewing or braising, I simply don’t have enough big pots to go around. And that’s where a wok can also shine.

For long-simmering dishes that call for first browning chunks of meat and sauteing onions or other aromatics — think carne guisada, beef bourguignon and the like — a wok handles the job

beautifully. And it has enough volume to hold most anything else, including a couple quarts of liquid.

If you’re braising something that requires a long cooking time, you’ll want to find a way to keep some of the steam inside. There are plenty of dedicated wok lid options out there — flat wooden discs and aluminum domes are the most common — but my pizza pan method also works well if you don’t have cabinet space to store yet another bulky kitchen tool. I usually place something heavy on top of the pan — ironically, often a cast-iron skillet — to help minimize the steam that can

escape.

Oh, and San Antonio, you’re going to love this one, if you needed more evidence. You know what it’s like to cram two or three tortillas into a pan to heat them. I can fit six corn tortillas in my standard 14-inch wok, and they still have room to move.

If you’re in the market for a wok, look for a few key features. First, it’s unlikely you have a range specifically designed to handle a round-bottomed wok. Fortunately, the late celebrity chef Joyce Chen solved this by inventing the flat-bottom wok. This is the way to go for nearly all home cooks in the U.S., as a wok

with a round bottom will be dangerously unstable.

Carbon steel is the preferred material as it’s the most wellrounded in terms of weight and heat responsiveness. Stay away from nonstick surfaces as they’ll likely be quickly damaged. Many woks have a long wooden handle on one side, but look for models with a second, smaller grip on the opposite side if you want to be able to safely move it around when it’s loaded with hot oil or stew.

IStockphoto The high-sided wok is ideal for french fries, fried chicken and other recipes that take up a lot of skillet space.